Chapter Summaries

The Elder of Chaos realized the old man before him was likely Taisu, one of the Five Pre-Heavenly Ultimates, and apologized for attacking him. Taisu offered to pass on a supreme Dao Art, leaving the Elder of Chaos elated.

• The Elder of Chaos recognized the old man's power as the source of substance and understood why his attack and Chaos Laws had failed.
• The Elder of Chaos cautiously asked whether the old man was truly Lord Taisu, and the old man answered ambiguously.
• The Elder of Chaos recalled Gu Changqing meeting Lord Taiji and realized he had now encountered one of the Five Pre-Heavenly Ultimates himself.
• The Elder of Chaos apologized to Taisu for his earlier offense, and Taisu casually forgave him.
• Taisu offered to impart a supreme Dao Art to the Elder of Chaos.

Lord Taisu offered to teach the Elder of Chaos the Taisu True Exposition, a method for seeing through acquired falsehoods and perceiving the innate essence of things. The Elder of Chaos accepted, and Lord Taisu began imparting the method to him.

• The Elder of Chaos set aside his suspicions and gratefully accepted Lord Taisu's offer to pass on the Dao.
• Lord Taisu explained that the Taisu True Exposition could reveal the essence beneath divine abilities, formations, karmic disguises, and other acquired falsehoods.
• The Elder of Chaos vowed to remember Lord Taisu's kindness and cultivate the method diligently.
• The Elder of Chaos sat down to focus, and Lord Taisu sent a dim chaos-colored light into his brow as he began expounding the Dao.

Lord Taisu taught the Elder of Chaos the Taisu True Exposition in the Outer Chaos Region, transforming the Elder’s understanding and revealing the art’s power to change the essence of things. After Lord Taisu vanished, the Elder remained eager to cultivate the technique and spread its name.

• Lord Taisu expounded the Dao to the Elder of Chaos, causing the Taisu True Exposition to imprint itself on his sea of consciousness.
• The Elder of Chaos’s consciousness and aura transformed as his understanding of the art deepened.
• The Elder of Chaos realized the Taisu True Exposition could alter the essence of things, potentially turning gold to stone and immortals to mortals.
• The Elder of Chaos thanked Lord Taisu, who told him to cultivate the art diligently and make its name known throughout the heavens.
• Lord Taisu vanished, leaving the Elder of Chaos fervent and eager to cultivate.

The Elder of Chaos gained insight into the Taisu True Exposition and set out for the Primordial World, while Lord Taisu hinted that he had used the Elder to aid his escape. On Golden Ao Island, Gu Changqing awoke from his long drunken sleep amid a profound transformation and sensed he was about to break through.

• The Elder of Chaos used the Taisu True Exposition to sharpen his perception and vowed to uncover Gu Changqing’s weaknesses before heading toward the Primordial World.
• After the Elder departed, Lord Taisu suggested that the Dao impartation had been part of a scheme to escape his confinement.
• On Golden Ao Island, the Interception Sect disciples continued discussing the Sword Dao vision Gu Changqing had produced, while Gu Changqing slept on in his cave abode.
• Gu Changqing’s blood qi and body surged with Great Dao power as he finally awoke.
• Gu Changqing drank from the Wine God Gourd and said he was about to break through.

Gu Changqing sensed that the Interception Sect’s Sacred Court Method had reached the brink of a breakthrough and emerged from his cave. Chanting the method on Golden Ao Island, he triggered a surge of the sect’s fortune that transformed its disciples and left the Sacred Court on the verge of taking shape.

• Gu Changqing realized that the Interception Sect’s practice of the Sacred Court Method had reached an unseen barrier, and decided to go outside.
• Gu Changqing emerged from his cave, drawing an excited welcome from the disciples and the personal disciples led by Daoist Duobao.
• Gu Changqing chanted the Sacred Court Method, making Golden Ao Island tremble as the sect’s fortune began to boil.
• Beams of heavenly fortune descended upon Golden Ao Island and enveloped Gu Changqing and the Interception Sect disciples.
• The disciples’ cultivation and Dao foundations surged, with some breaking through to Great Luo and others reaching the threshold of Quasi-Saint.

Gu Changqing’s Sacred Court Method caused the Interception Sect’s fortune to surge, forming a gigantic Fortune Golden Dragon above Golden Ao Island. The disciples gained fortune fire that bound their fortunes to the sect, leaving the Interception Sect united in a shared destiny.

• Sect Master Tongtian sensed the Interception Sect’s fortune rising as Gu Changqing recited the Sacred Court Method outside his cave abode.
• A vast curtain of heavenly light enveloped Golden Ao Island, and the sect’s fortune condensed into a ten-thousand-mile Fortune Golden Dragon.
• Interception Sect disciples marveled at the dragon and credited Senior Brother Changqing’s Sacred Court Method for their sect’s extraordinary fortune.
• The disciples discovered sacred fortune fire kindled within themselves, binding their strength and fate to the Interception Sect.
• Daoist Duobao explained that the fortune fire meant the sect and its disciples would prosper or decline together.

Gu Changqing’s actions transformed the Interception Sect’s fortune, giving its disciples a powerful boost in cultivation and establishing the sect as a kingdom. He returned to his cave to drink, content with the result and reflecting on the ranks of fortune dynasties and courts.

• The Interception Sect’s Fortune Golden Dragon appeared above Golden Ao Island, and its disciples felt their cultivation and the island’s spiritual energy improve.
• The disciples praised Gu Changqing for forging the sect’s own fortune and foundation, then realized he had quietly returned to his cave abode.
• Gu Changqing drank from the Wine God Gourd instead of receiving the disciples’ worship.
• Gu Changqing considered the Interception Sect a kingdom and reviewed the hierarchy from kingdoms through immortal kingdoms and the higher royal, imperial, divine, and Immortal Courts.

After the Interception Sect advanced to dynasty rank, Gu Changqing received fortune feedback and awakened a unique divine ability. As he began to study it, a change also disrupted Nuwa’s cultivation in Wa Huang Heaven.

• Gu Changqing reflected on the difficulty of establishing a fortune dynasty in the Primordial World and felt satisfied with the Interception Sect’s progress.
• Fortune surged through Gu Changqing’s sea of consciousness as feedback for the Interception Sect’s advancement.
• A new divine ability formed in Gu Changqing’s primordial spirit, and he recognized it as a unique gift of dynasty-rank fortune.
• Gu Changqing closed his eyes to comprehend the ability while Nuwa’s peaceful cultivation in Wa Huang Heaven was suddenly disrupted.

Nuwa sensed that the Sky-Mending Stone she had left behind had awakened and developed an unusual primordial aura, but she chose not to interfere. Zhunti recognized the stone as a possible opportunity for the Buddhist School and rushed to find it, while Jieyin watched him go with renewed hope.

• Nuwa sensed a change in fate, traced it to a glowing Sky-Mending Stone, and recognized the stone she had left after mending the heavens.
• Nuwa saw that the stone carried an ancient aura of Origin and decided to leave it alone.
• Zhunti sensed the Sky-Mending Stone's aura resonating with the Buddhist School's Dao and took it for a possible fortuitous opportunity.
• Zhunti hurried toward the stone, and Jieyin approved of his departure, believing Heaven had granted the Buddhist School another opportunity.

Zhunti discovered that the Sky-Mending Stone contained a being still gestating and decided to take it back to the Western Buddhist Sect to nurture it. Jieyin saw the stone as a chance to restore the Buddhist School’s fortunes, and Zhunti prepared to claim it in the eastern lands.

• Jieyin rejoiced that the Sky-Mending Stone had appeared and sensed the opportunity through his shared origin with Zhunti.
• Jieyin entrusted the matter to Zhunti as he hurried toward the stone’s location.
• Zhunti arrived at a barren mountain and found the glowing Sky-Mending Stone on its summit.
• Zhunti sensed a living being forming inside the stone and realized it could become an exceptional disciple of the Buddhist School.
• Zhunti decided to take the stone to the Western Buddhist Sect and nurture it with a Sage’s power.

Zhunti took the Sky-Mending Stone from the Eastern World to Vulture Peak, hoping to nurture the being inside it into a Buddhist School genius. He ordered his disciples to teach it Buddhist doctrine daily, leaving them utterly baffled.

• Zhunti wrapped the Sky-Mending Stone in Buddha light, took it from the Eastern World, and hurried back to Vulture Peak.
• Zhunti arrived at the Great Thunderclap Temple, where Maitreya Buddha and the disciples questioned him about the stone.
• Zhunti told the disciples that an ancient being with whom he shared a karmic affinity was gestating inside the stone.
• Zhunti ordered the disciples to recite Buddhist scriptures and mantras to the Sky-Mending Stone each day so it would awaken sooner.
• The disciples fell silent, baffled by Zhunti's instructions.

Zhunti brought the Sky-Mending Stone to Vulture Peak and ordered Buddhist disciples to preach scriptures to it, hoping to hasten the being inside its birth and win a prodigy for the Buddhist School. Watching from Golden Ao Island, Gu Changqing recognized the stone as the future Sun Wukong and wondered where the other three were.

• Zhunti suspended the Sky-Mending Stone before the Great Thunderclap Temple and instructed his disciples to preach scriptures to it.
• Maitreya Buddha's disciples recited Buddhist scriptures around the stone day after day, though it showed no response.
• Gu Changqing sensed the chanting from his cave abode on Golden Ao Island and saw the stone at Vulture Peak.
• Gu Changqing recognized that Sun Wukong was gestating inside the stone and realized Zhunti's intervention would bring his birth forward by many years.
• Gu Changqing wondered where the other three were.

Gu Changqing recalled the origins and powers of the Four Mischievous Monkeys, then set out to find Wuzhiqi at the Huai River. He reached the river and descended into its depths, hoping Wuzhiqi had emerged.

• Gu Changqing watched the Sky-Mending Stone at Great Thunderclap Temple and reflected that the being inside was the Stone Monkey of Numinous Wisdom, one of the Four Mischievous Monkeys.
• Gu Changqing considered finding another of the four monkeys and decided to visit the Huai River in search of Wuzhiqi.
• Gu Changqing left his cave abode, while Daoist Duobao and Golden Spirit Holy Mother wondered whom he intended to target.
• Gu Changqing arrived above the Huai River, called out to Wuzhiqi, and stepped into the river's depths.

Gu Changqing entered the Huai River and faced Wuzhiqi’s overwhelming water attacks, walking through the waves on a path of Great Dao Golden Lotuses. He challenged Wuzhiqi to meet him and erased the attacks with a single palm, leaving their confrontation unresolved.

• Gu Changqing’s arrival stirred the Huai River into towering waves, sending the aquatic beings fleeing.
• Gu Changqing walked into the river as Great Dao Golden Lotuses appeared beneath his steps and held the waves back.
• Gu Changqing identified the river’s power as Wuzhiqi’s water Laws and called for him to show himself.
• Wuzhiqi sent coordinated curtains of water imbued with Yin-Yang and life-and-death powers against Gu Changqing.
• Gu Changqing raised one palm and exploded the waves, water curtains, and Laws into mist and light.

Gu Changqing effortlessly shattered Wuzhiqi’s attack on the Huai River and revealed that he had come to offer the river overlord a great opportunity. After Gu Changqing persuaded Wuzhiqi to emerge, the monkey began rising from the riverbed.

• Gu Changqing broke apart Wuzhiqi’s water-law assault with a casual palm strike, stunning the aquatic creatures watching nearby.
• The aquatic creatures identified the drunken stranger as Gu Changqing, the Wine Sword Immortal, and feared his power.
• Gu Changqing called to Wuzhiqi and said he had come without ill intent to bestow an opportunity upon him.
• Wuzhiqi stirred with interest, then slowly emerged from the depths of the Huai River.

Gu Changqing confronted Wuzhiqi above the Huai River and announced that he had come to take him as a disciple. Wuzhiqi was stunned, then overwhelmed with joy, while the watching Water Tribe awaited his answer.

• Wuzhiqi emerged from the Huai River, sensed Gu Changqing's overwhelming power, and asked who he was.
• The Water Tribe spectators feared Wuzhiqi would anger Gu Changqing, though some realized Wuzhiqi had lived in seclusion and did not know his reputation.
• Gu Changqing introduced himself as the Wine Sword Immortal of the Interception Sect and said he had come to take Wuzhiqi as his disciple.
• The Water Tribe reacted with shock and envy as everyone waited to see whether Wuzhiqi would accept.
• Wuzhiqi briefly showed bewilderment, then felt overwhelming joy at Gu Changqing's offer.

Wuzhiqi recognized Gu Changqing as the Wine Sword Immortal and eagerly accepted his offer of discipleship. He knelt before Gu Changqing and pledged to enter his tutelage as his Master.

• Wuzhiqi recalled Gu Changqing’s legendary feats and felt fear over his earlier attempt to test him.
• Wuzhiqi realized that becoming Gu Changqing’s disciple would bring him protection and powerful teachings.
• The aquatic beings along the Huai River watched and discussed Wuzhiqi’s chance to become Gu Changqing’s disciple.
• Wuzhiqi knelt in the void and declared that he was willing to enter Gu Changqing’s tutelage and serve him as Master.

Gu Changqing accepted Wuzhiqi as his disciple above the Huai River, though he drunkenly forgot how many disciples he had taken. He told Wuzhiqi to return with him to Golden Ao Island and cultivate diligently, then departed into the sky.

• Wuzhiqi eagerly agreed to enter Gu Changqing's tutelage, drawing astonished and envious reactions from the Water Tribe creatures along the Huai River.
• After Wuzhiqi kowtowed, Gu Changqing drunkenly asked which disciple he was taking, making the onlookers laugh.
• Wuzhiqi cautiously said he did not know either, and Gu Changqing guessed he might be his third or fourth disciple before casually accepting him.
• Gu Changqing lifted Wuzhiqi to his feet, told him to return to Golden Ao Island and cultivate diligently, then vanished into the sky.

News of Gu Changqing taking Wuzhiqi as his disciple spread through the Primordial World, while Houtu discerned the hidden connection between the Four Mischievous Monkeys, the Chaos Ape, and Gu Changqing. Gu Changqing brought Wuzhiqi to Golden Ao Island and welcomed him to his wine-filled cave abode.

• Cultivators across the Primordial World discussed Gu Changqing defeating Wuzhiqi and taking him as his disciple, expecting Wuzhiqi to become a great powerhouse.
• Houtu searched the laws of the Underworld and discovered the Chaos Ape's origin condensing through a connection involving the Four Mischievous Monkeys.
• Houtu discerned a concealed thread linking the Buddhist School, the Interception Sect, the Xuanmen Saints, and Gu Changqing, and wondered how far ahead he had seen.
• Gu Changqing led Wuzhiqi onto Golden Ao Island, where Wuzhiqi marveled at the Interception Sect's spiritual energy and powerful disciples.
• Gu Changqing brought Wuzhiqi into his cave abode, burped drunkenly, and told him to help himself to the wine, leaving Wuzhiqi bewildered.

Wuzhiqi began comprehending the Great Dao after tasting Gu Changqing’s wine, while Gu Changqing visited Tongtian in Biyou Palace. Tongtian questioned why Gu Changqing had taken Wuzhiqi as a disciple, and Gu Changqing replied by asking whether he had heard of the Chaos Ape.

• Interception Sect disciples encouraged Wuzhiqi to follow Gu Changqing’s instructions and praised the wine’s ability to aid cultivation.
• Wuzhiqi tasted a sip of the hundred-thousand-year Drunken Immortal Brew and gained profound insights into the Great Dao.
• Gu Changqing appeared in Biyou Palace and greeted Tongtian casually while drinking wine.
• Tongtian asked Gu Changqing whether taking Wuzhiqi as a disciple was connected to an unseen heavenly mandate.
• Gu Changqing asked Tongtian if he had ever heard of the Chaos Ape, leaving Tongtian shocked.